The federal government launched the Royal Commission on Chinese Immigration in response to anti–Chinese attitudes in British Columbia. The commissioners gathered information to help federal Members of Parliament determine the best course of action for legislating Chinese immigration to Canada. Their survey of British Columbia's Chinese population lists 157 Chinese women and 10,335 Chinese men; the women were classified as wives, girls and prostitutes. The commissioners collected evidence from Canada, the United States and Australia relating to the effect of Chinese immigration on trade, social relations, and morality. While some witnesses and reports praised the Chinese, others portrayed them as a public menace.